Teachers to get bonuses in December

Education Secretary Leonor Briones on Tuesday assured public school teachers that they will receive their bonuses before the end of December.

“The Department of Education (DepEd) maintained that teachers will receive their bonuses before the year closes,” Briones said in a statement.

She noted that teachers and non-teaching personnel are eligible to receive their performance-based bonus (PBB) for 2015 following the submission of all required documents to the inter-agency task force.

“The ranking reports of schools, which will be the basis of the amount of PBB to be released per school personnel, are already submitted to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for evaluation and processing of payment,” the DepEd chief explained.

The PBB to be received by teachers and non-teaching employees ranges from P5,000 to P35,000.

“The amounts cited in the Department Order No. 56, series 2016 are determined by the personnel’s
performance or contribution to the achievement of education targets and commitments. The grant of PBB is to recognize the exemplary performance of teachers, to further motivate higher performance and greater accountability, and to foster the value of meritocracy in the Department,” Briones said.

Briones also said that teachers and non-teaching personnel will also receive their annual productivity enhancement incentive (PEI) worth P5,000 next month.

The year-end bonus equivalent to one month salary and an annual additional cash gift worth P5,000 were already given to all DepEd personnel.

Briones also noted that the education department recognized and considered the promises of President Rodrigo Duterte to increase the salaries of 763,000 teachers nationwide.

“On an average, a public school teacher with entry-level salary of P19,000 may receive a total of P23,000 per month – a far cry from the average starting salary received by a teacher in a regular provincial private school at P8,000. The disparity has even caused more private school teachers to migrate to public schools,” she said.

“Given the widening salary gap with private schools and with other service sectors, the inflationary impact, the premium on teachers in Science and Math and senior teachers, and the huge Department population, DepEd must ensure that the fulfillment of this promise is carefully planned in terms of policy and financial requirements,” the DepEd chief added.